Creating a pilot project that gives up to five states the ability to band together and negotiate Medicaid drug prices with manufacturers and provides greater flexibility to the states in choosing which drug would be included in their formularies.

The bottom line: The budget proposals, which come days after the White House Council of Economic Advisers issued a report about lowering drug prices, suggest that the administration may be starting to focus on keeping President Trump’s oft-repeated promise to bring drug prices “way down.” The election-year timing may add some political incentive to make progress on the issue.

The proposals involve some difficult tradeoffs. Some Medicare beneficiaries would likely face higher prices, but those who now pay the most overall for their drugs could save thousands of dollars annually. Still, Allan Coukell, senior director of health programs at the Pew Charitable Trusts, told Kaiser Health News that while several of the proposals have price-lowering potential, “none of it changes the overall trajectory” of prescription prices.

As editor in chief, Yuval Rosenberg oversees all aspects of The Fiscal Times' website and email newsletter. His writing has appeared in publications including BusinessWeek, CNBC.com, CNNMoney.com, Fast Company, Fortune, Newsweek, Money and Time.